Ryan Day does not want you referring to rival Michigan by name
Ryan Day takes Ohio State’s rivalry with Michigan seriously. Very seriously.
Day held a press conference via Zoom on Wednesday and spent under an hour answering questions from reporters. One reporter compared the challenge of trying to play/prepare for a season amid the pandemic to preparing for a game, such as one against Michigan.
After the question was completed, Day corrected the reporter and let her know they refer to the Wolverines as “the team up north.”
“It’s ‘Team up North’, Lori, please don’t use that word. “
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Love @ryandaytime #OhioStatefootball pic.twitter.com/VzoA6bqHju— buckeyegirl (@buckeye86355869) August 12, 2020
Day is very much following after Urban Meyer, who made this a rule, following the tradition inspired by legendary former Ohio State coach, Woody Hayes.
Meyer enjoyed what he saw from Day and called it “awesome” over Twitter.
Awesome. https://t.co/gZwltgL5Kq
— Urban Meyer (@CoachUrbanMeyer) August 13, 2020
Day taking the rivalry that seriously and not even joking about it on the call shows just how important the matter is to him and the program. This helps explain why Justin Fields said what he said upon joining the Buckeyes last year.